Targeting keywords for your business is one of the biggest challenges in setting up an effective SEO strategy. Not because it’s difficult to do, but because most people have a narrow lens through which they view keywords.
If you’re looking to get real results from your keyword targeting, think outside of the limitations of traditional keyword research. Ask the right questions and take an indirect approach to reaching your ideal customers.
Keyword Challenges
Traditionally, businesses and SEO professionals have put all of their attention on keywords that are directly related to their service or product. Naturally, it makes sense to try to reach those who are searching with the obvious keywords.
But there are also those who have yet to discover that they need your product. You can gather valuable data from indirectly related interests and use that to leverage your position for future purchases.
If they’re not searching for your product now, they will be in the near future.
Selecting keywords that are based on the general interests of your ideal customer will give you insight into new ways to reach them.
And as the search algorithms continue to change, you’ll need to adapt to this broader approach for long-term SEO success.
One Step Ahead of Your Customers
Consumers who are interested in one product are usually interested in similar or complimentary products. Technology enthusiasts shopping for the latest smartphone are also looking at accessories, other mobile devices, and software applications.
This provides you with the opportunity to reach future customers before they’ve actually demonstrated an interest in your product or service.
This is where early engagement is crucial to success. Asking the right questions will give you right answers.
The following are just some of the questions you can consider:
● What drives their interest in technology?
● What other content are they engaging with, sharing, etc.?
● Who are the influencers they follow on social media and blogs?
● What sites do they visit on a regular basis?
● What brands are they fans or followers of?
Surrounding the Keyword Dragon
Taking this approach allows you to find more of the right people, even if it’s at a not-so-right time. Rather than aiming for the obvious and most competitive keywords, you can come in from another angle and begin engaging with new customers in an indirect way.
Using tools like Facebook’s graph search, you can refine your target audience around the factors that are indirectly related to your offer. You can use location, income level, and interests to create new content that goes beyond just marketing yourself.
You’ll still want to combine this new approach with traditional keyword targeting. This gives you better results and ensures that you reach your audience with content that’s useful and relevant to their needs.
This gives you more keyword options if you feel limited by traditional targeting of keywords directly related to your business. That’s one of the biggest problems SEO professionals and their clients run into.
But having the right information allows you to understand your customers better and build momentum earlier in the sales process.
The ways in which you target keywords for your business must adapt alongside the changes that are happening in search. Highly competitive keywords make it difficult to rank and limit the scope of the content you provide.
By understanding the interests that are related to your product and service, both directly and indirectly, you’ll ensure that your message gets to your future customers before your competitors do.
Let us know how you’ve been able to maximize your keyword targeting results in the comments below.
